Mom Dad And Me Books Parts 1 and 2

Mom, Dad and Me Books

originally written in 2011

The other day I was thinking about what an important job it is to communicate with my girls. Sometimes they don’t ask things, because they don’t want somebody else to hear their question, or they are too shy.
I remember longing to talk with somebody when I was a young teen. There is such a need at that age to connect, to feel like you aren’t alone, to be reassured! I was such a gawkly, awkward kid at this age. I wasn’t a beautiful girl…. I was taller than all the boys, skinny, and insecure. I had thoughts that were deep and grown up, and thoughts that were rather childish….

All weekend I was trying to figure out another avenue to communicate. We take the girls out alone 1 time each month, and that is really fun! Sometimes they go alone to the grocery store, and that is fun too….but sometimes they need more.
So, I came up with a Diary of sorts. It is a 3 way diary between Mom, Dad and each of our girls.
I purchased them each a theme book, on sale for 40 cents! (score!)

The idea is that they will write an entry each day. It doesn’t have to be a question; maybe a compliment or a complaint. It could even be a poem or a serious pondering. And then, mom and dad will write something back.

I am really looking forward to them communicating freely with both of us. They already do for the most part, but I can tell there are times they want to say something and hold back. I hope this will be an avenue to help them get around their shyness or awkwardness.

Today, each of my girls thoughtfully wrote something in their book, and placed them on my desk to read for later.
It is so precious to see their words. It was clear on the very first day that this is going to be a GOOD thing! 🙂
And now, I need to go and ponder one of the questions! LOL

Mom Dad and Me Books: Updated

originally written in March 2012

We have consistently used our books at least on a weekly basis, sometimes daily. It is funny how you can get into a routine and each of our girls is different how they use them.
We have talked about delicate girl things, or we have even told jokes to each other. But the great thing is, everybody is using them, and everybody seems to like them. 🙂

If you haven’t tried something like this, I encourage you to do it. Writing encouraging words to your children can never be wrong. They can even go back and read your kind words again and again.
If they are sad, and not ready to talk, sometimes they are ready to write. If they are embarrassed, they will write, if they are happy, they will write.

Spelling does not matter in these books and it is not corrected. If things become dormant, all it takes is mom or dad writing a word of encouragement, and the writing begins once again.

If anybody started to use the idea, how has it gone? Has it made a difference?